This invention relates to the separation of molded parts from connectors, and, more particularly, to the separation of products from byproducts produced during the molding process.
In the production of parts by molding; molten material is forced into the cavities of a mold through openings called sprues and channels called runners. When the material has cooled sufficiently, the mold is opened and the desired product is expelled, along with byproduct runners and sprues. The latter represents waste material which must be separated from the product. This can be done manually but it is time consuming and inefficient.
One technique for the automatic separation of molded parts from sprue and runner connectors is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,663,142 which issued May 16, 1972. This separator makes use of a conveyor to feed both the parts and connectors from a mold to a set of coaxial disks on a shaft at the end of, and perpendicular to, the conveyor axis feed. The disks are spaced so that the parts will fall between them for collection, but the byproduct connectors will not. The latter are instead conveyed by scalloped or serrated peripheries of the disks to a waste collection station.
In a variant of the disk system, a drum with flexible lift pins is substituted for the disks. The spacing of the pins is in accordance with the spacing of the disks. The desired objects fall between the pins and the waste product is carried by the pins to a collection position.
Other machines for the separation of molded parts from connectors are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,264,012 which issued Apr. 28, 1981. In one machine a rotatable coil conveyor is used. This permits the parts to be separated by falling through the openings in the coil while the connectors are advanced by the conveyor in the direction of its axis of rotation to a collection station. To separate relatively small parts from connectors a cylinder can be mounted within the coil.
In the foregoing separators there is the possibility that an unwanted connector will fall between the disks or through the openings of the coil, and be collected with the wanted parts. In addition, the first two forms of separators are primarily suitable for the separation of production parts from byproducts where there are comparatively large differences in sizes between the parts and the byproducts. When it is desired to separate relatively small parts, adjustments must be made, such as the use of an internal cylinder with the coil separator. In all cases, a change in jobs requires a time consuming substitution of disks or coils.
Another object of the invention is to facilitate change in separational requirements, so that the separator can be adjusted readily to accommodate parts and connectors of varying sizes without requiring stoppage of the machine and the substitution of alternative parts.
Other separation techniques, although not for the separation of molded parts from connectors, are illustrated by the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 4,389,927; 3,884,800; 3,874,508; 3,731,841; 3,519,129; 3,287,472; 3,260,364; 3,172,588; 3,121,191; 3,023,898; 3,976,550; 3,733,479; 1,745,318; and 622,035.